Whale Watching in Sydney

Whale Watching Sydney

Super Hot Special for Whales – Adults now from $59 per person for a limited time only!

Here at Fantasea Cruising, we have never met a person who doesn’t love whales! From our sales and management team to our friendly whale watching crew, Marine Biologists and our guests from near and far, we just can’t get enough of these awe-inspiring marine mammals!

In Sydney we observe the annual migration of humpback whales from May – November. Between the months of May and August is the ‘Northern Migration’. These gentle giants are headed north from Antarctica for warmer waters to their winter breeding and calving grounds. During the ‘Northern Migration’ you can expect to see active males and competition groups, grand surface breeches, lobtailing and chin slaps as the males prove their dominance in the fight to attract females.

By the end of August or early September we start to see the whales heading back via Sydney on their ‘Southern Migration’. Whilst baby whales are born with a natural ability to swim, other behaviours are learnt behaviours. During the ‘Southern Migration’ you are most likely to see mums and their calves swimming close to shore headed for Antarctica. Whilst on occasion escorted by a protective male you can expect to see mother’s teaching their young. There is nothing more exhilarating or sweeter than seeing a baby whale imitating its mum!

You Won’t Just See Whales!

Other Whale Species

Whilst ‘humpback whales’ are generally considered to be the best species for whale watching due to their playful nature, you may be lucky enough to spot a ‘southern right whale’ or even a ‘minke whale’ or two, these guys are super quick though so if you blink you could miss them!

Fur Seals

There are a small group of ‘long nose’ fur seals (New Zealand fur seals) that love to hang out on the cliffs of ‘South Head’ underneath ‘Macquarie Light’, if the conditions are right, we’ll get right up close to the cliffs so you can marvel at these beauties basking in the sun!

Dolphins

Whilst out on a Fantasea Cruising Whale Watching adventure, you are very likely to catch a glimpse of ‘common’ or ‘bottlenose’ dolphins.

Sea Birds

‘Seabirds’ are another common sighting on the Fantasea Cruising Whale Watching adventures. We see different species of ‘albatrosses’, ‘gannets’, ‘shearwaters’ and ‘petrels’ to name a few.

Rated "Excellent" by 200+ Travellers!

Whale watching from Umina

What an experience this was! It took us a little while to find the whales but the young lady that was speaking on the microphone was very interesting to listen to and kept us well informed you can tell she really enjoyed her job. The 2 whales we saw were so playfully jumping in and out of the water and waving to us. We had a lovely day thankyou.

– Dream221848 via TripAdvisor

Whale watching cruise from Palm Beach wharf

Just over three hours on this most comfortable vessel. We saw so many whales at close range. The staff were superb. The young lady doing the commentary and PR was so natural and presentable. We had an NRMA deal which made the cost very attractive. Weather was perfect and seas slight. Sea lions were also seen at very close quarters. Highlight for me was crewman Dave who we discovered knew some of my friends in the UK. A one in a billion chance. We had such a good day we rebooked for a September cruise. A must for locals and definitely tourists.

– Lew J via TripAdvisor

Whale Watching dep. Ettalong

It was a great winters day, lots of sun and only a gentle rolling swell. There were a lot of people on board, but not so many as to feel crowded. A number of whales were seen, and the passengers were polite and let everyone get a look. A whale would be spotted and the crew would try to manoeuvre to a spot where the whales would pass near the boat. Most times they got it spot on, if they didn’t show after about five minutes we moved on. A great way to spend the morning. Great boat, pleasant crew and a knowledgeable commentary. Obviously a certain amount of luck is necessary to get the weather, sea state and whale sightings coincident. We were lucky and would recommend to our friends. Well done Fantasea.

– Hawker2017 via TripAdvisor

Whale watching

"I'd like to thank the crew particularly Cassie and Josh for making a beautiful day even better. We were lucky enough to see a whale and I'll be back later in the season. The Catalina is a great boat, clean and well laid out with great views all round.."

– suelF3627NF via TripAdvisor

Fantastic

"Despite the wet weather and being quite early into the season we were able to spot a number of whales and have a lovely morning out! The vessel was very modern and comfortable. A must do for locals and visitors alike"

– Hayley C L via TripAdvisor

Fantastic day, great boat and professional and informative staff!

"Spent the afternoon for on this tour for my partner's birthday excellent crew, lots of commentary and a great day!"

– Monique S via TripAdvisor

Whale watching- Darling Habour

"Best tour! Emma was such a good guide !! We saw 5 whales 1pm Sunday 16th June 2019..Amazing experience and not crowned like other boats .. We nearly missed our boat but the team waited for us."

– Grace L via TripAdvisor

We saw whales!

"We had a great tour and were fortunate enough to watch two whales for about 30 minutes. The narration provided by the marine biologist was excellent. We would do this again."

– kent542015 via TripAdvisor

Wonderful

"First time to see the whale. smooth sailing to the deep sea area, nice breeze and beautiful scenery, really enjoyed it! While trying to spot whales, the staff gave some background knowledge about humpback whales, learned something as well.
very good weather! we got to see four whales!! they were very active as well! Amazing to see how big the whales are and how they play in the sea. Cute creature! Seems that they were very happy that day!
Not so many people on the cruise, everybody got plenty room to watch. Captain stopped the cruise for quite long time, so we could really enjoy ourselves!
Staff are so friendly and attentive, also offered Free drink and snack.
Overall it was rememberable experience! only one regret, we did not see enough!"